


Getting to Know You (Me) All Over Again

by shadowed_sunsets



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Drama, F/M, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Multi, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2010-05-06
Updated: 2010-05-06
Packaged: 2017-10-09 08:24:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/85039
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shadowed_sunsets/pseuds/shadowed_sunsets
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU of TCI. Rose is sent away safely back home and the Doctor and Jack get away safely as well, but regenerating without the Tardis is a little more trouble than either of them had anticipated. Especially since Rose is having a hard time believing this brown-haired stranger is the Doctor, and since the Doctor is having a difficult time himself with remembering just who he is exactly. Oh, and did I mention the spaceship hovering over London?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is pretty much my take on or how I wish TCI had gone, with Jack, the Doctor and Rose all together and struggling through the Sycorax invasion.
> 
> Plus I also wondered what would happen if the Doctor had amnesia because of the regeneration and Rose had even more trouble accepting him than she had had in canon.
> 
> And so, this story was born. This story that I now give to you... and I hope the two of you get along well together.

In the end, it wasn’t the pain that woke Jack from his unexpected unconscious state of not-death, but the grating sound of the Daleks yelling “Exterminate!” and of their beams blasting loudly nearby.

He scrambled to his feet, catching his breath once he was upright again for a few seconds before grabbing the gun lying on the floor by his feet. “Doctor? Doctor!” Jack yelled worriedly, rushing down the hallway in the direction of the control room readying the gun as he moved.

When he finally made it to the room, Jack stopped cold in the doorway, having started to run even faster when the noises from the Daleks suddenly stopped, as he took in the sight before him. The room was empty, well, not completely empty since there were still cords strewn about the floor and dead computer banks lined up opposite each other- but no Daleks. And the screen where the Dalek Emperor was talking to them was blank again.

No Daleks, and when he took a few steps forward into the room and around the bank of computers nearest to him, all the while keeping a close eye out for any sign of movement, there was only a figure lying on the floor… completely motionless.

A figure that was only too familiar to him.

“Doctor!” Jack yelled, rushing over to kneel beside his friend, abandoning his gun in his worry. “Doctor, are you alright?” He leaned over the man, pressing his ear to the Doctor’s chest and sighing in relief when he heard both hearts beating. When he sat back again, he could see his friend’s chest moving slowly up and down, yet his face remained still and his body didn’t move at all.

“Doctor? Come on, Doctor, you have to get up! Don’t leave me alone here.” Jack called to his friend; lightly shaking the other man's shoulder when there wasn’t any response. “I know you’re conscious, Doctor, so please, please get up. The Daleks are gone, I don’t know how, and they may or may not come back.”

For a few more seconds, the Doctor remained silent and motionless other than the steady rise and fall of his chest in front of him, until finally his eyes flew open as he gasped loudly.

Jack grinned. “Welcome back, Doctor!”

“Nice to see you too, Captain,” the Time Lord grumbled, slowly straining to sit up. “I don’t suppose you could try to be a little more cheerful, could you?”

“Come on, Doc, we just escaped from Daleks!” Jack exclaimed happily, moving forward to help the Doctor into a seated position before he was waved away. “We were facing down Daleks, Doctor, Daleks! And we’re alive, we got out of it alive!”

The Doctor rolled his eyes, “I know perfectly well what situation we were in, Captain. There’s no need to remind me.” He turned his head to look around the room. “But they are gone now,” he commented, eyes widening slightly.

“Yeah, good job, Doc! I guess you managed to adjust the Delta wave and set it off in time after all, right?” Jack asked with admiration clear in his voice, grinning as he watched with an anxious eye as the Doctor shakily climbed to his feet.

As his eyes continued to roam around the room, the Doctor shook his head and answered, “I didn’t, there wasn’t time. I was in the middle of working on it when,” he drifted off, his brow furrowing, “when…”

Jack stared at him in shock. This was the first instance he could think of where the Doctor didn’t or couldn’t remember something or was unsure about it. He was always the man with a plan, or the first to share what he knew with anyone who’d listen. This time though, “You don’t know what happened?”

The Doctor turned to give him a cold blue-eyed glare. “Just a momentary lapse in my memory, Captain, but just momentary.” He then grinned. “Have to use my fantastic mind for more than just solving your problems, Captain, can do hundreds of things at the same time, me.”

“Yet you can’t remember what happened just a few minutes ago?” Jack asked, tone laced with sarcasm. They might have been in what seemed to be a serious situation but he just couldn’t pass up such an open invitation to barb the Doctor. Especially when they were fairly rare.

“In fact, I can,” the Doctor claimed smugly and then continued thoughtfully, crossing his arms across his chest. “There were Daleks yelling ‘exterminate!’ and ‘Daleks are supreme,’ while the Emperor made threats. I was still working even though there wasn’t any chance of finishing it or adjusting it in time. Then, I was arguing with the Emperor and a Dalek near me yelled ‘Exterminate!’ and I turned…”

Jack had been carefully watching his friend throughout his explanation as he listened, and had noticed a flicker of pain sometimes pass across his face and saw him tense for even just a second several times. So when the Doctor paused and turned to glance sideways at the place where Jack guessed this had taken place, he was only mildly surprised to see that part of why the Doctor had crossed his arms was he had his hand pressed against his side- and underneath his hand the fabric was torn to the skin.

Where was his jacket? He never took that thing off, not outside the Tardis anyway. “Doctor?” Jack asked, a note of worry in his voice.

“I’m fine.” The Time Lord snapped, starting to turn back towards Jack when all of a sudden he froze, eyes squeezing shut and the hand at his side tightened.

Jack moved forward taking one step and then another, hands outstretched. “Doctor, what happened? Did you get shot?”

“Get back!”

He stopped mid-step. “What? Doc, if you’re hurt we need to get to the med bay right away.” Jack reached out again. “Come on.”

“Can’t,” the Doctor argued, stumbling backwards a few steps. “She’s gone.”

“What?” Jack practically yelled, staring at him. “Why is the Tardis gone?”

Grimacing, the Doctor bit out, “Sent Rose home. Wanted her safe.”

“What about us? How are we going to get back to her?” Jack demanded crossly, starting to pace back and forth. “She left with our only mode of transportation.”

“Have your vortex manipulator,” the Doctor corrected, then doubled over with a low groan. “Don’t!” He snapped again when Jack moved to help him. “Stay back!”

Jack clenched his fists, upset at not being able to do something. “My watch? You disabled it! I can’t use it anymore.” When he finished, he realized that something even more was wrong, “Doc, you’re… you’re glowing.”

“Thanks Jack, I hadn’t noticed,” the Time Lord drawled sarcastically, his face etched in pain. After appearing to concentrate for several moments he added, stumbling slightly over to the nearest bank of computers, “it’s, it’s starting…”

Jack blinked, “what’s starting?” He asked, noticing a second later that the Doctor seemed only to be still standing due to the computers he was propping himself up on. And that his entire frame was shaking as the golden glow under the pale skin began quickly growing in brightness until the Doctor looked like he was being lit by a spotlight from inside.

“D-Doc?”

The Doctor grimaced again, and suddenly began gasping loudly as if he were being momentarily deprived of air, eyes widening in his pale face. For several long seconds Jack was worried the Time Lord was suffocating, despite the respiratory bypass, but after one last gasping breath his friend appeared to get himself under control enough again for conversation- at least for now.

“You… must have… heard about… this Jack, Time Lords way… of cheating death?” The Doctor said with a breathy chuckle, with a hint of his usual wild grin.

Jack looked confusedly at him, casting his mind over everything he knew or had learned about Time Lords until what the Doctor was talking about finally clicked, “you mean regeneration? That’s actually real? I’ve heard stories but, “he laughed, “you just keep surprising me Doc!”

“I’d tell you to lay off the Doc, but not only would you not listen but we don’t really have time.” The Doctor laughed, “ironic, that eh? Time Lord not having time.”

“Doctor, I don’t think this is the time to be laughing about not having time,” Jack scolded lightly, taking another step forward.

But as soon as he took that step the Doctor’s eyes refocused on him again and he held up a hand, “don’t Jack, you can’t get too close or you might get caught in the blast. Can’t have that happening.”

Jack stayed back like his friend wanted but watched the other man carefully since he was now constantly flickering with that strange glowing, gold light under his skin. “Doctor, this might be a stupid question but you do know you’re… glowing, like a Christmas tree.”

“Yes Jack, bit hard to miss that. And you did mention it already. But there’s some things I need to tell you, so I’m slowing it down,” the Doctor told him, evidence of just how much pain he was in showing clearly on his features. “Now, Jack, like you probably know I’m going to change. I’ll be different but I’ll still be the same, still be the Doctor. You need to remember that. And just a warning, without the Tardis this isn’t guaranteed to go well. Have a history with bad regenerations…”

Jack rolled his eyes. “This is nice and all, Doc, but get on with regenerating already… it can’t be good for you to be doing that. Everything will be fine and we’ll be talking again in just a few seconds.” He smiled encouragingly at his friend. “Time Lord, right?”

For a few unnerving seconds the Doctor stared at him with those light blue eyes that were nearly as pale as his skin before suddenly one of the ‘everybody lives’ smiles as Jack called them appeared, nearly cutting his face in half. “Well then,” his friend announced with a tone of finality, that smile still in place but Jack knew the Time Lord well enough to see that just as he had thought delaying the process had only hurt him more, and had altogether been a bad idea.

But it wasn’t really the time for that, Jack thought.

The smile slipped for a few seconds before it came back in full force. “See you soon.”

Jack watched then, heart in throat, as the Doctor flashed him one last grin and then pushed himself off of and away from the bank of computers in what was obviously a struggle. “Doctor,” he began suddenly, wanting their goodbye to be more than just that- but he knew the Doctor wouldn’t go for anything sentimental.

He was too late, though; his friend had already turned so his back was to Jack, and a second after jack said his name the Time Lord gave a strangled gasp before arching backward- and exploding in light.

Jack couldn’t help but stare. The Doctor looked like he was on fire and surrounded in a ball of flame. It didn’t last for very long and yet Jack felt like he couldn’t breathe in those few short moments that seemed even longer as he watched the Doctor change before his eyes.

They hadn’t had long enough together, with that Doctor, and with Rose not here it wasn’t…

Oh, god, Rose. Where was Rose? The Doctor had mentioned that he had sent her home in the Tardis, but despite his confidence in the Tardis Jack still had no real idea if she had made it home safely.

Jack pledged to himself that as soon as the Doctor was done they would find a way to get back to Rose; she didn’t deserve to be abandoned by them after everything. And he knew even if the Doctor wouldn’t say it that they both cared for her.Or at least the Doctor they had known did.

Jack raised his head to look over towards the bank of computers where the fireball that was the Doctor was. Or had been; now there was a skinny stranger with brown hair wearing the Doctor’s clothes standing in the exact same place.

Wait…

He knew from the few tales he had heard about regeneration that Time Lords changed during the process, and even the little the Doctor had said in that twisted way of his without actually saying anything had mentioned him changing. But, to know it was one thing -to see it happen before his eyes was quite another.

Jack took a cautious step forward, and then another when nothing happened until he was a few feet away from the stranger who wasn’t a stranger- supposedly. He opened his mouth to call to the man, but it took him several times before he managed to get the word out and then to make it actually audible.

In the meantime during this, the other man had stood, apparently oblivious to Jack’s presence, fidgeting slightly as he patted himself down- as if checking to make sure he was all there. Which, giving what had just happened seemed to be a good idea.

“D-Doctor?” Jack asked cautiously, not managing to stop the shake in his voice.

At the word, suddenly the stranger stilled and then nearly spun around to face Jack, surprising him when he found himself under the look of not cold blue eyes but instead by wild dark brown ones. “Jack!” the man exclaimed with a hint of surprise, eyebrows rose to the top of his forehead. “Jack, Jack Jackitty Jack! Captain Jack Flash!” He went on, voice rose in excitement before pausing thoughtfully. “Ooh, I like that one! Captain Jack Flash, suits you perfectly.” The man laughed.

Jack knew he should say something, but he was struck speechless by this new Doctor even after only a few words. He had even more energy than his Doctor had during his ‘everyone lives’ adrenaline rushes, and that was saying something. It was as if he were on a permanent adrenaline rush. Plus he sounded like an overactive teenager from the same part of London as Rose. The man was wild and out of control, but it somehow seemed normal for him.

“Doctor,” Jack began, but the Doctor had already gone on, continuing as if Jack hadn’t said anything.

“Now, what was I saying… something about changing.” The skinny Doctor frowned, looking thoughtful but then quickly shook his head discarding the question before the grin returned once more. “Never mind that, Jack, now…” The man stopped mid-word, brown eyes widening as he raised a finger to rub it against his teeth. “Oh, new teeth,” he said around the finger, “that’s weird.”

Jack laughed, quickly warming to this new Doctor. “You’ve been talking nearly nonstop for several minutes and you’re only realizing this now?”

The other man paused, the finger still in his mouth, to glance up at Jack in a indirect way that made him look like a kid asked what they were doing in the middle of something they weren’t supposed to be doing. “Well, talking’s good,” he began to explain, hand dropping to his side, “talking’s important. Talking helps you get out of anything, well, almost anything. Plus,” the Doctor said with a slight defensiveness, “it’s hard to notice something like new teeth when your minds running at nearly the speed of light and your mouth along with it.”

Well that certainly explained the mouth on this Doctor at the moment. But, “The speed of light, really?” Jack teased, already falling back onto his old habits with the Doctor. He seemed to be really easy to get along with this Doctor.

The Time Lord looked like he was about to argue, brow furrowed, when all of a sudden he laughed and his bewildered expression softened. “Well, not speed of light exactly, I was exaggerating. And I did say nearly speed of light. Not exactly but nearly, there’s a difference.”

Jack nodded. “Sure,” he said with as little humor as he could manage.

The Doctor gave him a glare that was nowhere as near as scolding or frightening as the last him’s glare, especially with the light shining faintly in the back of his eyes. But before Jack could call him on it the Time Lord opened his mouth and startled rambling again.

“Well, chit-chat’s good and all but we should get going… going somewhere. Without the Tardis though that’s a bit of a problem…” the Doctor trailed off, turning to study the room around them carefully. After a silence he continued, speaking quietly as if to himself, “There’s not really anything workable here… most of its destroyed… especially,” as his eyes fell on the remains of the Delta wave a haunted look passed over his face and he whispered softly, “I never was able to finish that. Always the coward.”

When the Doctor remained silent, something that Jack had a feeling wasn’t a good thing for his Doctor, he followed his friends gaze and realized what the other man was remembering. It was the Delta Wave that the Doctor had been building, a machine that would have destroyed all the Daleks and yet also killed everyone on Earth. Jack had left the Doctor to give him more time to finish it before the Daleks came, but from what the man had just said it sounded like he hadn’t come even close to setting it off. And it was just one more decision the Doctor shouldn’t have had to make, even if he had eventually done the right thing in the end.

“Doctor,” Jack said softly, moving forward so he was right in front of the other man and then placed what he hoped was a reassuring hand on the jumper-clothed shoulder. “It wasn’t your fault; you just didn’t have enough time. And, I guess it worked out alright in the end if you look at it the right way.”

At the first touch of his hand the Doctor tensed, for some reason Jack was unsure of. But before he could ask, the haunted expression was suddenly gone, replaced by that wild grin and the Doctor’s eyes were back on him again- full of warmth and perhaps even humor.

“Jack, of course! Stupid, stupid, mind’s still not working properly. Here,” the Doctor explained, knocking his clenched hand against his head several times in a way Jack doubted was good for him before he practically leapt at Jack, or more specifically his left hand.

“Doctor, what-?” he started to ask, confused by the Time Lord’s sudden mood change but then the Doctor held the wrist with his Vortex Manipulator up to his eyes and squinted at it.

As the Doctor fiddled with the watch, he shook his head mournfully as he said in what Jack is sure is pure banter. “Come on, Jack, you’re not that thick. I know you aren’t. Think- with no Tardis, what’s the one way to get out of here?”

After that last question Jack, who had truthfully not been completely listening realized that the Doctor had stopped fiddling and was now looking at him instead, expecting an answer.

“Um, apparently my vortex manipulator?” Jack answered hesitantly, staring down at the other man in puzzlement. “But Doc, you made it so it doesn’t work, remember?”

Tongue between teeth in concentration, the Doctor sent him a reproachful look before returning to his work. “I told you Jack, Doctor- not Doc. That doesn’t change even if I have. And as for your watch here…” the Time Lord paused to release one hand from around Jack’s wrist and rummage around in the pockets of his now slightly baggy jeans instead. “I can just as easily- aha!” He pulled out the sonic screwdriver and aimed it at the watch after having adjusted the setting first. “Fix it again.”

Jack watched as the Doctor attempted to sonic his watch, the now thin long fingers fumbling with the tool several times before the watch gave a long, whiny beep and the screen flickering to life.

“There we go! That’s done it!” the Doctor announced with another wild grin, tucking the screwdriver back into his pocket. “Now,” he said, fingers flying over the buttons on the face of the watch, “to send us off… Earth, how about right after Rose got there…. And, last but not least… coordinates!”

With a final beep, Jack’s watch was set and Jack had only a moment to observe how skinny this new Doctor was as he was pulled closer before one last button was pressed and the floor was pulled out from under him.

The trip in the Vortex only lasted several seconds, and when their feet found solid ground again Jack let out a cry of delight once he realized where they were as he gazed around the open concrete square where his watch had landed them.

“We made it Doctor! 21st century Earth!” Jack felt almost giddy with delight until he turned to the Doctor, who was standing next to him.

“Of course we did,” the Time Lord mumbled with a slightly defensive note, “you had me.” But then his head rose up and his eyes widened, “I- I think I’m going to sit down now, Jack,” the Doctor told him distantly and then proceeded to fall down, crumbling to the ground.

“Doctor!” Jack called, rushing over to kneel beside his friend. “Are you alright?” He warily put a hand out on the thin shoulder.

But the Doctor waved his hand away with an annoyed expression as he snapped, “I’m fine, Jack. No need to baby me.”

Hurt, Jack opened his mouth to protest that that hadn’t been his intention when the anger suddenly vanished from the now youthful face and the other man sighed.

“I’m sorry, Jack, I shouldn’t have snapped at you. It’s just that the regeneration was going a little wrong in the first place and our trip in the Vortex just now didn’t make one iota of help. Seems to have done the opposite really.” The Doctor looked up at Jack, squinting slightly from the light. “If I ever try to travel in the Vortex without the Tardis, Jack, feel free to remind me it’s really not a good idea. Actually, that goes for all around advice, it’s not fun or a good idea to travel without a Tardis.” The Doctor raised a hand that Jack was fairly sure was supposed to be pointing at him but was actually pointing at a spot vaguely to his left. “Remember that, Jack.”

To his credit, Jack gave a nod as solemn as he could manage before adding with only a slight smirk, “You’re babbling again, Doctor.”

The Doctor shook his head several times as if he were trying to focus his mind before he replied, “I can’t really help it, Jack, tends to be a habit in this body apparently. In fact I kind of missed it last time around, just a little.”

After a slight pause the Doctor moved slightly against the ground until he was able to slowly push himself to his feet and then to straighten up so he was standing next to Jack again.

Which worked well until he happened to overbalance and nearly fell down again, only staying mostly upright due to Jack supporting him.

“I think we should get you somewhere where you can sit down and rest, Doctor,” Jack suggested, loosely holding the tipsy Time Lord against him. “Some place that’s not here anyway. I may not know how safe this part of London is but I’m sure it’s not a good place for an unstable, newly regenerated Time Lord.”

At his words, the Doctor attempted to push away from Jack to stand on his own as he protested, “I’m perfectly fine, Jack. In fact, I’m practically perfect in every way.” The man pulled a face at that, looking puzzled, “where did that come from? Oh, from Disney, apparently. That’s odd.”

Before Jack could ask what on Earth- or not- Disney was, the Time Lord blinked and then turned to refocus on Jack, his eyes bright- almost too bright- and that wild grin was back on his face.

“Come on, Jack, let’s go visit Rose! She’s probably been worried sick about us!” the Doctor announced excitedly, bouncing up and down on his heels as he spoke before grabbing Jack’s hand and beginning to run full-pelt for the entrance to the stairway for the building opposite them.


	2. Chapter 2

Jack did his best to keep up with the Doctor but boy was this Doctor fast at running with his long strides and his boyish enthusiasm and energy. Eventually he was lagging behind so much that the Time Lord released his hand and continued running for the stairs which he vanished up seconds later.

“Doctor, slow down!” Jack scolded, laughing as much as he was able to at the moment as he ran. But the Doctor wasn’t listening or couldn’t hear him, or both; he was already away up the stairs — out of sight and hearing range.

Deciding to take it slower in order to conserve his energy, Jack had only taken a few steps up the staircase when there was a pained cry from above him followed by a loud thud.

“Doctor!” Jack yelled, and then when there wasn’t a reply he ran up the stairs taking them several at a time.

It turned out that the Doctor hadn’t made it very far before his collapse, only to the landing between the first and second floor where Jack found him sitting right up next to the wall leaning against it and breathing more heavily than Jack had ever seen him breathe.

“Doctor? What happened, are you alright?” Jack asked worriedly, hurrying over to his friend from the place on the landing where he’d been momentarily frozen.

Up close Jack could see just how pale the Doctor was all of a sudden, the freckles that were new standing out against his pale skin and it cast the rest of his dark features into an even deeper contrast. He also seemed to be having lots of trouble breathing, running up a flight of stairs defeating him more easily than constantly running for his life.

“Doc, you look horrible!” Jack blurted, and then automatically wanted to take it back since he was sure the fact was blatantly obvious.

He was proved right when the Doctor opened one eye to glare at him from under a limp, dark fringe that lay damply against his forehead making him look more like an annoyed teenager than a high-and-mighty Time Lord.

“Thank you, Jack,” the Doctor drawled wearily, still sounding a little out of breath. “I hadn’t noticed that at all, good to know I can always rely on your observational skills.”

Jack shook his head. “I thought you’d left your sarcasm behind in your last body. But it’s actually kind of a relief to know its still there.”

The Doctor flashed him another wild grin as he lifted a hand to impatiently brush the hair away from his eyes. “That’s me, the same rude and not…” The dark eyes suddenly flashed with excitement and glee as his last words died away.

But before Jack could ask what he meant, the Doctor was suddenly so close to him that their faces were only inches away from each other and the Time Lord was once again firmly gripping his wrist as he stared at Jack with intensely dark eyes.

“Doc…”

“Jack, there’s something I need to ask you,” the Doctor told him, voice as serious and solemn as he had never heard it before in this Doctor but had yet many times in the previous Doctor.

All Jack could do was nod to show his understanding of the graveness of the coming question, one that he was completely unsure of.

The grip on his wrist tightened, if that was possible, and Jack tried not to wince as he was once again reminded of how strong the Time Lord was- especially when he wasn’t aware of it.

The Doctor then leaned even closer in towards him as he whispered gravely, “This is a very important question, Jack, the fate of the universe may depend on your answer.”

After a pause Jack said weakly, making an attempt at a smile, “42?”

There were a few seconds of silence then between them until finally the Doctor blinked and said in a tone of utter astonishment, “You can reference Hitchhiker’s but you don’t know Disney? Seriously, Jack? Keep up, will you?”

Jack opened his mouth to try to defend himself but the Doctor had already shaken his head in despair and moved on.

“No, Jack, this is even more important,” the Time Lord paused- for emphasis Jack was sure- before he asked in the same extremely serious voice, and in a very dramatic way: “Am I… ginger?”

Jack just stared at the man in front of him before the words finally managed to sink in and he understood. It was then that he had to struggle not to let his mouth gape open or to not strangle the Time Lord once he realized just what his friend was asking him.

“That’s the universally crucial question you wanted to ask me? The color of your hair?” Jack asked, voice dripping with incredulity.

The Doctor made a frustrated noise and pulled away releasing Jack’s wrist. “You make it sound so ridiculous, Jack!” he protested. “But I’ve never been ginger and I’ve always wanted to be ginger! Not in ten bodies have I been ginger, it’s always rude and not ginger instead.”

Jack blinked. “I knew you were old but you’ve really done this ten times?”

“Thanks for that, Jack,” the Time Lord said with only a hint of a pout. “It’s always reassuring to be reminded of how old I am.”

“And now you’re not ginger,” Jack added, teasing, then laughed at the look on his friends face. “Ten times, huh? I bet you have stories to tell.”

The Doctor grinned brightly at him. “I do, actually,” he agreed, and then the grin turned mischievous, “but you won’t be hearing them anytime-“

When the Time Lord suddenly broke off and then didn’t start speaking again right away, Jack frowned and moved closer to his friend again. He opened his mouth to call the Doctor’s name or ask him if he was alright- a question he seemed to be asking a lot today- when the Doctor suddenly blinked, eyes refocusing, and shook himself vigorously as if he were coming back from somewhere.

“Jack?”

The voice calling his name sounded almost lost and yet definitely confused, and it also didn’t miss Jack’s notice that the Time Lord had continued to constantly blink and then shake his head.

Together with the trouble the Doctor had been having breathing, it made Jack certain that something was very wrong.

Even though his friend had warned him that things could go wrong- more wrong than your friend literally turning into a different person right in front of you- this seemed like it had become even worse than the Doctor had anticipated.

“Doc?” Jack asked cautiously, leaning forward to rest a hand on the thin shoulder.

The physical contact appeared to have grounded the Doctor for the moment as he shook his head again once more, closing his eyes.

“T-the process is going wrong, Jack. I-I can’t focus at all, my minds all fuzzy yet its running fast, so fast…” His voice was quiet and slightly groggy, as if he had just woken up as his face scrunched up in concentration. “My regenerations tend to go unexpectedly complicated, but, without the Tardis… my darling ship…”

The dark eyes flew open in the pale face as the Doctor wrapped a steel-like hand around the arm of the hand resting on his shoulder, eyes focusing on Jack for a split second before moving away to look at what they could see of London from the landing they were currently resting on.

“My Tardis, Jack! I, I don’t know where she is. I can feel her, barely. I know she’s nearby but that could be anywhere, anywhere in London!”

His voice was wild with panic and he didn’t seem to have any idea of what he was saying at the moment, as if he were just babbling without any filter from his mind, so as he went on Jack tried unsuccessfully to calm him.

“Doc, I’m sure the Tardis is fine. She and Rose made it here safely and they are perfectly fine. There’s nothing to worry about, and as soon as you feel better I’ll prove it to you. The three of us will go out together and find the Tardis and you’ll see she’s fine,” Jack soothed his friend, gently prying the long, thin fingers from their death grip on his arm before taking the hand in his own and pulling on it to try and regain the other mans attention.

But the Doctor was already off again, mouth following in the path of his unrestrained and fevered mind.

“No, no, Jack! She could be anywhere, she could be hurt! Something could have happened to her and she might not even be in London, or in this country or on Earth! When I sent her back what if something went wrong?” He turned to Jack with such a wild look in his dark eyes that Jack wasn’t sure if the Doctor was really seeing him or not, and then had to pull his friend back down when the Time Lord scrambled to his feet and tried to rush over to the balcony to look out over the city.

“Let go! Let go! I have to find her; I have to find her before she’s gone forever! I need her- she’s all I have left! Please!” the Doctor begged, still on his feet and leaning backwards as he pulled on Jack’s hand in his own all the while looking wildly down at him with such desperation and fear in his voice that it frightened Jack.

It was with that sight engraved in his mind that Jack knew the Doctor desperately needed help, and that he was incredibly unstable.

“Doc, Doc, it's okay,” Jack soothed in a soft voice and in a way that he hoped would reassure his friend. But when the Time Lord turned his gaze away to stare almost dreamily out over London he used the Doctor’s inattention to pull the other man down to his knees and then somehow wrestle him close enough to wrap his arms around the thin body.

A few seconds later, the Doctor let out a deep breath and then returned the embrace, the air of his breath cold against Jack’s skin. “I, I can’t stop this, Jack, I think I’m losing… something.” The Doctor’s voice became muffled as he buried his face even deeper in Jack’s shoulder. “I, I can’t remember things anymore, it’s all so vague…” As he spoke the words became more and more distant and quiet until finally he said, “Bye, Jack,” in barely a whisper before falling limply against Jack, his head coming to rest against Jack’s and his arms hanging limp at his sides.

Once the Doctor went apparently unconscious in his arms, Jack panicked and pushed his friend a little away from him to ensure that he was indeed unconscious as his head lolled forward. The Doctor was also remarkably pale, even more so than before and now in a sickly kind of way, and the new dark hair was lying damply against the pale forehead that looked somehow glossier than it usually did.

With a frown Jack reached out, steadying his friend with his other hand, and lightly pressed the back of his hand against the Doctor’s forehead.

It was only a slight surprise to him that the Doctor felt even hotter than a human with a fever would.

“You idiot,” Jack muttered fondly to the unconscious man, “you’re burning up.” He gently brushed the damp hair away from the hot skin before simply staring down at his friend.

He looked so young now, and Jack expected that once the Doctor was well again he would be practically bouncing with energy. Full of boyish charm and enthusiasm.

“Well, I suppose I should get you up to Rose. Then the two of us will take care of you together somehow. You do always make things so difficult,” Jack said with a sigh, shaking his head.

With some struggle Jack managed to get the Doctor on his back in a way so he would be able to carry the other man easily- for being so tall and thin this time around the Doctor didn’t weigh very much- and began to make his way up the stairs.

It was just as he was braving the third set of stairs that Jack felt movement against his back and a cheerful but not quite yet familiar voice said in his ear, “Say, old chap, I don’t mind being given a free ride- quite nice of you actually- but would you be good enough to tell me where we’re going?”

Jack paused long enough to scoff and reply testily, “If you’re awake now you can very well walk on your own.”

The Doctor’s reply was just to laugh and to continue to hold on tightly, as if he were quite enjoying himself.

Jack sighed loudly and set his jaw, making a vow to get back at the Doctor for this in the near future and then continued up the stairs.

A few minutes later he finally managed to take the final step up to the top floor that seemed more like the fiftieth floor than the fourth and took a moment to rest.

“Really, if you’re up to it you can walk this yourself. Even if you’re sick you can still walk I’m sure,” Jack scolded his friend as he stood propped up against the wall trying to catch his breath.

After a pause, the Doctor replied with the same cheerfulness, “It’s wonderful of you to offer, friend, but I’m not sure I’d be steady enough on my feet for that. Just a little further, if you please.”

With a sigh, Jack pushed away from the wall and began slowly moving down the hall, keeping more to the inside wall. He might not be afraid of heights but it was still better safe than sorry. And with the Doctor on his back and him being more cheerful than before… almost frighteningly so…

“What happened to your rude and not ginger streak?” Jack asked with irritation, trudging down the hall until he came level with a door whose nameplate said Tyler on it.

As Jack crouched down in front of the railing to let the Doctor slide off his back so he was sitting leaning back against the railing, he glimpsed the other man open his mouth to attempt to reply to what he’d said.

“Don’t, that was a rhetorical question,” Jack advised, and then checked that the Doctor had closed his mouth again before he went over to the door and knocked loudly.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rose was stirred from her restless and dark thoughts at the sound of someone knocking on the door, a sound that resonated throughout their small flat, and quickly set the mug of tea her made had pushed into her hand a while ago on the table then threw off the blanket and rushed towards the front door.

“Rose? Rose sweetie?” her mum called worriedly after her, half-rising from her chair.

At the door Rose paused to call back, “its fine mum! I’ll get it!” And then proceeded to fling open the door.

Standing there in front of her on their weather-worn doormat was a tall, dark-haired man with a worried smile and wearing tight-fitting jeans and a t-shirt.

A man who she knew all too well.

“Jack! Oh, my god, you’re alive!” Rose shouted in delight before she rushed forward to tightly wrap her arms around him and bury her face in his shoulder.

“Whoa there, Rose, it’s good to see you too but that doesn’t mean you should tear me in half,” Jack said laughing as he brought his arms around her to hold her tightly against him. “I’m so glad you’re safe.”

Rose gave a choked laugh and pulled away from him, wiping her eyes. “I’m so glad you’re safe too Jack. But what happened? Did you guys get the wave thing set off after the Doctor sent me away? Did you get rid of the Daleks? And just where is the Doctor?” Rose asked anxiously, and then leaned around him to look up and down the hallway as she looked for the Doctor.

When she caught sight of the brown haired stranger resting against the railing across from them her eyes widened and she went very, very still.

“Who’s that?” Rose asked mildly, although there was a dangerous note in her voice.

Jack flinched and looked over his shoulder to follow her gaze which only confirmed his fears that she was talking about the new Doctor. He sighed and turned to step to the side of the doorway so Rose could see the other man before saying hesitantly but truthfully, “That… is the Doctor.”

Rose stared for a long moment at the stranger before turning back to face Jack with a furiously upset expression. “That’s,” she said pointing viciously, “not the Doctor. Did you even try Jack? ‘Cause that’s not the man who showed me the universe and stole my heart; That’s not the man who sent me away in the Tardis back to my time ‘cause he wanted to keep me safe and promised my mum he would no matter how much I wanted to stay with him. And that’s not the man who blew up my job then saved me from shop-window dummies by taking my hand and telling me to run.”

At this last bit the brown-haired stranger made a noise that sounded like a quickly stifled laugh, and Rose turned on him quickly.

“He doesn’t even look like the Doctor Jack! What, did you just pay some random stranger off the street to come with you to see me and play the Doctor? ‘Cause he’s wrong. He’s too tall, too thin, he has brown not really short dark hair, he has brown not blue eyes and he’s too young-looking. Even if he’s wearing boots, jeans, and a dark jumper, that are all too big for him anyone could-“

Her voice grew less heated and more hesitant as she went on until finally she broke off to stare intensely at the man who was not the Doctor.

His response was to simply tilt his head and smile warmly at her in a friendly way.

Finally Rose opened her mouth again and said quietly, her brow wrinkled slightly, “Hello.”

The man’s smile brightened drastically and he sounded cheerful as he chirped in reply, “Hello.”

Rose glanced at Jack but saw only encouragement from him so she decided to be brave and took a step forward out into the hallway and closer to the stranger. Then after a pause she said, “I don’t mean to be rude, but Jack says you’re the Doctor and I usually trust him so I’d like to hear your answer. Are you the Doctor?”

The man’s smile dimmed somewhat at her question to then change into pure confusion. “I hate to add to your riddle instead of your answer, but I’m afraid I don’t really know. You see, I’m having a bit of trouble remembering things at the moment, and while the name ‘the Doctor’- if that is a name which I’m not so sure of really- sounds faintly familiar as does Jack and, Rose was it? Feel familiar that is, I’m afraid I can’t honestly answer your question,” he paused, forehead scrunching slightly in concentration, “whatever it was.”

Rose blinked at him, his answer only adding even more to her confusion. While he seemed genuinely confused and honest, the idea that he couldn’t really remember worried her a lot.

In anxiety, she turned to find Jack looking at them with a faintly amused yet mostly troubled expression.

All of her emotions and inner turmoil must have shown on her face because Jack finally sighed and said, “He really is the Doctor, Rose. It’s just that he changed and now’s a little confused because of it. So now if you wouldn’t mind he’s actually ill as well as confused so I think it would be a good idea to get him inside where he can rest,” Jack advised her gently and then walked over to kneel beside the man who might be the Doctor.

Rose, whose eyes had followed Jack, lowered her gaze with the intention of speaking to the stranger only to find that he had apparently fallen asleep. “He’s asleep,” she commented confused.

Jack sighed and reached up to lightly play with the man’s dark hair. “He must have tired himself out, from talking and thinking so much. He does that now.” Jack paused before continuing reflectively, “He never told me this would happen you know. He warned me that he was going to change and that it might not go well, but he never said anything about getting sick and having spurts of energy which he goes unconscious after, or about meaningless rambles, or about going into a panic over the Tardis or even about getting so sick that he’s forgotten who he is.” Jack’s voice cracked and he had to take a deep breath before going on, “He didn’t warn me about any of that.”

“Jack,” Rose whispered, then walked over to him and knelt beside him so she could wrap her arm around him and pull him back against her. “It’s alright, Jack, we’ll get through this together and before we know it he’ll be healthy again.”

Rose squeezed him gently and rested her head on his shoulder. “All we have to do is believe in him.”

Jack laughed. “Nothing is impossible, right?”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here's the next chapter! It's a little shorter than the first two chapters I'm afraid... but after this is when the good stuff starts happening. Well, more good stuff I suppose.
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoy!

The three of them stayed on the landing outside for several minutes, completely silent as they just enjoyed each other’s company. Well, except for the Doctor’s since he was asleep. But even if he was currently unconscious, it was still nice to have the old team back together again.

At least, it was, until a fourth person decided to interrupt them.

“Just how long you two planning to sit out in the cold like that? You’ll catch your death out here!”

Rose turned around to see her mum standing in the doorway, dressed in her robe with her arms wrapped tightly around herself.

“Mum, what’re you doing out here? I said I’d get the door!” Rose protested, a little impatiently as she turned back to look worriedly at the brown-haired stranger, whom she was just starting to believe might be the Doctor.

But Jackie didn’t hear, her gaze had already moved on to settle on Jack.

And as it did, a smile slowly grew across her face, a sly smile, and her eyes lit up almost eagerly.

“Hello there,” she greeted him. “And just who might you be?”

Jack flashed her a shadow of his usual flirtatious smile and answered, momentarily leaving it to Rose to look after the Doctor. “Captain Jack Harkness. And who are you, lovely lady? Rose’s sister?”

Jackie blushed, covering her pleased grin with her hand. How did Rose get lucky enough to know such handsome men? She looked towards her daughter to see Rose hovering over a brown-haired man sitting against the railing, apparently sleeping.

“And who is that then?” She asked, distracted from the handsome stranger by the one her daughter seemed so worried over.

Jack’s flirty smile quickly disappeared to be replaced by an uncomfortable one. “He’s a friend of ours,” the man explained vaguely. He knew from Rose that her mum was aware that she was traveling with the Doctor. But if Rose was having trouble believing this was the Doctor even after all she’s seen, then he had a feeling that her mum would have an even harder time understanding.

“A friend of yours? Well that’s helpful,” Jackie leaned forward to peer at the sleeping man. “Is he all right though? He looks sick.”

Rose turned. “He’s sick mum, really sick. And he needs somewhere to stay. He can’t just sleep out here.”

“And I suppose you want to bring him inside,” Jackie said sighing and crossed her arms. She didn’t exactly like inviting strangers into her home, but since these two apparently knew him, and given the distraught look on her daughters face, Jackie knew there was nothing for her to do but give in.

“All right then, do what you want.” Jackie said, stepping to the side of the doorway. “You’d better put him in the front room though, he’ll be comfortable enough there.”

Jack and Rose shared looks over the Doctor’s head, then slid their arms under the Doctor’s to somehow manage to half carry and half drag him towards the door.

“Oof, he’s heavy isn’t he?” Rose grunted, shuffling backwards through the open doorway, her slippers scuffing against the doormat and then the carpet inside.

“No he isn’t,” Jack argued as he followed her inside. “You should have tried being the one to carry him up the stairs on your back a few minutes ago. Alone.”

Rose gave him a curious look but simply said, “Turn,” as they came even with the open door of the front bedroom. She turned first, backing into the room until she was even with the bed as the Doctor’s feet came behind courtesy of Jack.

Once Jack was inside with her and they were both next to the bed, they worked together to lift the man up onto it. The task was a bit more difficult than it should have been, since he was taller and skinnier than the both of them were used to.

Rose looked down at the man where he laid on top of her mum’s bed, his dark hair limp against his sweat-damp forehead that was at odds with his badly shivering body. He looked miserable and fragile laying there on the pale bedspread, and Rose felt her heart go out to him. Her heart was telling her that even though he looked different than the man she had known and been traveling with, this was still the Doctor.

Even Jack had told her it was true, and she trusted him completely.

Rose frowned, sitting down on the bed next to the sleeping man. She studied him, tracing the unfamiliar features with her eyes, taking everything in.

“Doctor,” Rose whispered softly, leaning forward to hover over him. After a hesitant pause Rose reached out to lightly brush her fingers through his hair.

All of a sudden she felt the bed dip beside her and then the weight of a hand on her shoulder as Jack attempted to reassure her, pulling her against his side.

“He’s the same man Rose, I promise. And when he wakes up, you’ll see that for yourself,” Jack whispered softly in her ear, squeezing her shoulder.

She leaned in towards him, resting her cheek against the back of his hand, “I trust you Jack, I really do. But, when we were talking before- he didn’t even know me Jack! He was a complete stranger!”

“I know Rose,” Jack began to explain.

“Just what’re the two of you talking about?” Jackie demanded from the doorway where she had been watching them. “Who’s this man I’ve let into my house?”

Jack turned his head, careful not to dislodge Rose’s rest on his shoulder. “He’s the-“

Suddenly from behind them, the man drew in a long ragged gasp, as if he had been deprived of air for a long time. He then continued breathing heavily, nearly hyperventilating.

“Doctor!” Jack cried, turning so he was sitting on the bed facing his friend instead.

The other man’s new brown eyes were wide in his pale face, although Jack couldn’t tell if he was aware of anything around him as he simply shook, gasping for air.

“Come on, Doc,” He coaxed his friend as he slid his arms under the Doctor’s shaking body to gently pull him into a half-sitting position, the ill Time Lord now leaning against him.

“’Doctor?” Jackie parroted, completely lost.

At Jack’s cry, Rose turned around quickly to see Jack holding the Doctor against him, softly whispering what were supposedly reassuring noises in the other man’s ear.

She sighed and leaned in towards them to lightly place her hand on top of the brown hair. Rose whispered then, “Please, Doctor.”

The Time Lord jerked under her hand and in Jack’s arms, giving one last strangled gasp before going completely limp without any warning at all.

“Doctor?”

“Doc!”

The two of them hovered worriedly over him, confused over why he was suddenly conscious again.

As they worried, the Doctor’s head fell back against Jack’s shoulder, as he looked like he was asleep. A few seconds later his mouth fell open and as he slowly breathed out, a thin golden tendril of light escaped.

Rose stiffened, staring in shock at the Doctor. What the hell had that golden light just been? Even if this man was her Doctor, and he’d just changed his face… that still couldn’t be normal.

Before Rose could turn and ask Jack if he knew what was going on, the Doctor sat up against Jack. He was coughing and gasping with a hand clutched to his chest.

“That,” the brown haired man wheezed between coughs, “is definitely not a nice way to wake up.”

A delighted grin broke out across Rose’s face as she cried, “Doctor!” She leaned down over him, peering intently into his face, studying him.

The Doctor gave one last breathless cough before he shifted slightly against Jack and his eyes slowly fluttered open again right in front of Rose.

In the first moment when the Doctor’s brown eyes met hers, Rose could swear she saw a flicker of recognition in those depths. And then when he opened his mouth she was almost sure he was about to say her name.

That was until he blinked, and the next time his brown eyes met hers they held not recognition, but puzzlement.

He opened his mouth once more and said in the voice that she was still not used to, his forehead creased with confusion, “Rose, it was Rose. Right?”

With those few words, all at once Rose felt the enthusiasm and hope flow out of her until she was left with nothing but a sense of bone tiredness.

But she forced a smile on her face and agreed amiably, “Yeah, I’m Rose. Rose Tyler.”

He flashed her a smile in return that was only slightly tight at the corners. “Well, it’s nice to meet you Rose Tyler. Again, I suppose.” The man tilted his head back enough so he could look up at Jack. “And, Jack was it?”

Jack nodded, helping the Doctor sit up a little straighter so he was more comfortable between him and Rose on the bed. “Captain Jack Harkness,” he smirked a little, eyes shining, “At your service.”

The brown haired man seemed to perk up a little at this, and tried to push away so he could sit up on his own. But he only managed to nearly tumble sideways before Jack and Rose caught him. “Thanks.” He turned back to Jack, “So you’re a captain? Really?”

Looking somewhat confused by now, Jack merely nodded, gaze flickering momentarily to Rose.

“Just hang on a tic!” Jackie protested, stepping into the room and a little over towards them. “You two mean to say I’m supposed to believe that he’s,” she pointed unbelievably at the brown haired stranger, “the Doctor? What happened to the one that was all big ears, leather jacket and awful hair?”

Jack and Rose shared yet another one of those looks that seemed to be slowly growing in desperation. But before they could begin to try explaining, the Doctor pushed away from them and turned to focus interested eyes on Jackie. “Oi, that’s a bit much isn’t it? I think I’m hurt.”

He screwed up his face in thought as Jackie looked on confused, then finally said, “Yep, definitely hurt by that.” He then proceeded to grin brightly at her.

Jackie merely continued to stare.

Hoping to change the subject, and rescue Jackie, Jack put a hand on the other mans thin shoulder. “So, I take it from all this excitement that you’re feeling better then?”

The Doctor turned back to Jack, the smile slipping from his face. “Well, other than I can’t remember who I am and also seem to be surrounded by strangers… although they seem to only have goodwill towards me… except for those little things I’m fine. Just peachy.”

From his other side Rose snickered at this new Doctor’s wit. And now since he was awake again, he could feel the worry that had been nearly overwhelming her before slowly dying away; especially since she had seen his smile.

“Peachy Doctor, really?” Rose teased him. But then when he turned to look at her, affronted, she did her best to look innocent.

He opened his mouth to quip back, when Jack quickly jumped in.

“You might feel ‘just peachy’ Doc,” the other man began firmly, casting Rose a glance when she barely muffled her next snicker. “But, you still don’t look good. Even though you just woke up you should still rest some more. At least until you’re feeling better.”

The Doctor looked slightly upset, but didn’t attempt to argue with him.

Jack cast an eye over the rumpled, ill-fitting clothing he was wearing and lowered his hand to the sleeve of the jumper. “First though, you need to get out of these… clothes. And into something… more clean. Things that might actually fit you,” he smirked, “thin as you are now.”

“Jack,” Rose said worriedly, glancing at the Doctor who was now looking distinctly amused by all this.

“We don’t have any kind of men’s clothing around here. Not much call for that, at the moment,” Jackie told them from near the side of the bed. She looked curiously at the Doctor. “And I don’t think Rose and I have anything that’d even come close to fitting him.”

“Mum!” Rose replied with slight annoyance.

Jackie turned her eyes on her daughter, “What? It’s true Rose. Don’t tell me you think you have anything for him.” She said, jerking her head towards the Doctor.

“Well…”

Jackie nodded, as if that was that. “Well nothing. You’ll just have to go shopping.”

“Shopping?” Rose parroted, confused. She slid off the bed and to her feet.

Jack laughed heartily, helping the Doctor off the bed and to his feet as well, steadying him when he threatened to overbalance. “Why are you making it sound like you’re protesting Rose? We all know you love to shop, and that you’ll take any excuse you can.”

“Actually, we don’t all know,” the Doctor corrected Jack innocently; his hand on the other mans shoulder to keep him upright. “But if you three are sure that you know, then I suppose I believe all of you.”

“C’mon Rose,” Jack teased her, “A free chance to shop and pick outfits for Mr. Fashion Hopeless here? I can’t believe you’d pass that up.”

Rose frowned, “I’m not!”

“You’d have to go with her you know, Captain,” Jackie told him, arms crossed, sounding not too smug.

He blinked at her, as if she’d just told him the impossible. “Wait, what? But…”

In the amused silence that followed for several seconds Rose looked thoughtful, Jackie amused and Jack with a deer in the headlights look as the Doctor tried not to fall down.

Finally Rose said, “You know Jack, instead of buying new things we could just go to the TARDIS. It’d be easier.”

Jack shook his head, “It’d be easier Rose, but also complicated. First we’d have to find her, and then actually get him there.” He indicated the Doctor who seemed to already be visibly flagging. “And I don’t think that’s going to happen. He’s still not well.”

As Rose looked uncertain yet resigned, Jack took the Doctors arm and looped it around his neck, wrapping his arm around the skinnier man. “Let’s at least get you to the sofa.” He glanced over at Rose, “You want to lead the way?”

“Yeah, guess so,” Rose agreed, glancing at the two men in her life. She then turned back and begun walking out of the bedroom, moving slow enough so they could keep up.

The three of them successfully made their way down the hallway and into the living room with Jackie following close behind. All that time the Doctor seemed to be fine, barely stumbling, but when Jack finally helped him down onto the couch he seemed very relieved.

“Thanks Jack,” he said gratefully, leaning back against the cushions.

Jack nodded. “No problem. I’ve heard that you’re supposed to be respectful to your elders. Somewhere.”

The Doctor laughed at that, swinging his long legs up on the couch as he relaxed against the end of the sofa.

After seeing that Jack and the Doctor seemed to be able to safely make their way to the living room on their own, Rose went to get ready. A minute or so she came back out of her bedroom wearing a coat suitable to the cold weather, and a purse slung over her shoulder.

“You ready, Jack?”

Startled, the man turned to stare at Rose. “I really have to go with you?”

She nodded, giving him her most stubborn look. “Come on then.”

With a reluctant heavy sigh, Jack walked back around the couch and to the hallway where Rose was waiting for him. “All right, let’s get this over with then.”

As they were walking out the door, the Doctor turned around so his head was just peering over the edge of the couch, arms draped carelessly over the back. He called to them, “Don’t the two of you get into any trouble now!”

Rose laughed, flashing him a grin. “See, you’ve jinxed it now!” She called, and then let the door shut behind them.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is actually part one of the next chapter, but it's just a *bit* too long to post all at once.... seems I've renewed my ability to write long chapters.. ^^
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

As they walked down the hall outside Rose’s building, and then went down the stairs and out onto the pavement, neither of them said a word.

It wasn’t until they were nearly to the street that Rose reached out and took his hand firmly in hers. She gripped it so tightly that his fingers began to ache, but he didn’t dare pull away. Rose was holding his hand as if it was a lifeline for her, as if it was the only thing keeping her steady.

As they stepped out onto the street, joining the crowd, Jack pulled Rose against him, holding her close.

When she remained quiet, lost in her own thoughts, Jack tried for a bit of humor in the hope of coaxing her into a response.

“Wow. You people in this century sure go all out for this holiday, don’t you?” He commented lightly, staring around at all the brightly lit store fronts that featured a large man in a red suit, or brightly wrapped boxes stacked in supposedly enticing ways. “It’s Christmas, right?”

As he had hoped, next to him Rose stirred and turned towards him, a confused expression on her face. “What? They don’t celebrate Christmas in the 51st century?”

Jack shook his head. “Not really. Not with all the gift-giving, the parties, the shopping, all the lights, and jolly-making.” He laughed. “Not that I mind, of course. It’s probably a good thing it comes only once a year, right?”

Rose laughed as well, eyes brightening. “Probably, yeah. But that just means you get to experience a 21st century Tyler Christmas first hand.”

“I can’t wait,” he assured her. Then, he paused in place on the sidewalk, pulling Rose so she was out of the way of other pedestrians. “So, what’s first?”

The girl frowned, and turned to look around them, staring at all the shops and people. “Well, I know we have to find clothes for… the Doctor.” She turned back to face him, grinning up at him. “I’ll have you know, I’m depending on you, Jack.”

“Right, thanks,” he said cheerfully. They’d see how that worked out. Who knew what fitted the Doctor now that he was different and had regenerated.

“You’re welcome,” Rose said cheekily. Then she added, “But, that doesn’t mean we can’t do a little Christmas shopping on the way.”

Jack blinked at her. “Christmas shopping? You mean, like for gifts?”

Rose nodded eagerly. “Yeah, Mum and I already went out once, but we didn’t get to see much. I got a few things for her, and for Mickey, but I didn’t get anything for you or the Doctor.” The light in her eyes faded somewhat, and she wrapped her other arm around herself. “Didn’t know if I was ever going to see either of you two again.”

“Rose,” Jack whispered, taking a step closer to her in order to wrap his arms tightly around her. “You don’t have to worry anymore, we’re back. Both of us.” He chuckled softly. “The old team, together again. For good this time.”

Rose managed a weak laugh at that, burying her face into the cloth of his jacket. “Yeah, maybe. But he’s different now, Jack. And, I don’t know if it’ll ever be the same again between the three of us.”

Jack sighed softly, and gently pushed Rose away so there was space between them again. But he still didn’t let go of her.

“He may have changed his face, Rose, but that doesn’t mean he’s not the Doctor,” he told her, trying to sound as convincing as he could. Out on the street, surrounded by people rushing by on their own errands, leaning against the wall, maybe wasn’t the best place for this conversation. But it was one they needed to have.

Rose shook her head, the cloth of his jacket rubbing against her skin. “He’s not, Jack, he isn’t. He doesn’t even act like the Doctor, doesn’t look like him at all.” She paused for a few seconds then, and Jack was afraid she’d started crying. As strong as Rose was, what she’d gone through in such short a time would have been a lot for everyone. Even Rose, despite all she’d seen.

And he knew just how much Rose loved the Doctor, even if the two of them were both too pig-headed to admit it to each other. He cared for, maybe even loved, the Doctor, and it had been a shock to him seeing the Time Lord change. But that had been right in front of him, and all Rose had for proof was his, and the Doctor’s, word. The latter of which wasn’t really the most trustworthy right now.

Jack pulled her close to him again, letting her lean against him. “I know this is hard, Rose, especially with the Doctor not here to back me up. But, the brown haired stranger back at your flat is the Doctor.” When Rose lifted her head in what he suspected preceded a protest, Jack quickly went on, “I know all you have for proof is me telling you this. But it’s true.” He paused, watching the people move past them. “Maybe this isn’t the best place to be talking about this. But, just let me tell you one more thing.”

She frowned at him, apparently thinking this over. But a few seconds later, to his relief, she nodded her consent.

“I wish the Doctor was the one telling you this, but seeing as he’s not here…. There’s this trick Time Lords have. I’ve only heard about it, mostly in stories, but it’s called regeneration. It happens when they’re in a life or death situation. Instead of dying, they change. But, everything changes: their body, their personality, every single cell in their body changes.” He leaned in, making sure her brown eyes were fixed on his. “But Rose, even if he changed…. He’s still the Doctor. He might look and act different, but he’s still the one and only Doctor.”

Jack hugged her tightly. “Like you said, Rose, you just have to believe in him. Believe in who he is, and that he’ll come back to us.” He paused, “Okay, Rose?”

When he felt her nod against his shoulder, after a sniffle or two he pretended not to hear, he let go of her and pulled away.

Rose smiled up at him. “’Kay, Jack.”

Giving her his brightest smile, Jack offered her his arm. “So, Rose Tyler, where does a chap go for a bit of shopping around here?”

Rose laughed, a real laugh he was happy to see. Then, she slipped her arm under his, and grinned up at him. “Well, let me show you around town a little. First stop, the place I used to work that the Doctor blew up.”

“Right, I remember you telling me about that!” Jack commented as they moved off, joining the crowd. “And he always insisted it was an accident…”  
~~~~~~~~~~

In the end, they went to Harrod’s instead of Henriks, since it probably wouldn’t be a good idea for her to be seen there, with the whole, building being blown up thing. And she didn’t really want to be reminded of those boring days of her past, when she’d been nothing more than a shop girl before she’d met the Doctor.

Once the two of them were in Harrod’s, Rose had a fun time showing Jack around. He might have seen shopping malls from his own time, and on other alien planets, but still he seemed to enjoy seeing Earth’s primitive shops. For some reason, Jack found the idea of displaying clothes on plastic people especially amusing. Apparently they were very high-tech in the 51st century. At least, she guessed that from how often Jack kept pointing things out and laughing.

Instead of going to look for clothes for the Doctor, first they did a little shopping. It being Christmas time, nearly all the shops had their own displays to entice the shoppers, and as her and Jack walked around, there were several things that caught her eye.

Like she’d told Jack, in the time while she’d been waiting for him and the Doctor to come back for her- she had refused to think they’d ever abandon her, or something worse- her mum had taken her shopping. It’d been just one more of her mum’s attempts to stop her from moping around all day, and to get out of the flat. This attempt, at least, had mostly worked; she’d been able to buy a few gifts with what little money she had. But, it hadn’t made her completely stop thinking about the Doctor or Jack.

Rose hadn’t bought anything for either of them that day, since she hadn’t really known what to get them. What do you get a Time Lord who has 900 years worth of things, and a man from centuries in her future where it’s apparently much more technologically advanced? And now that the Doctor had come back to her, although he was a whole different person, she had possibly even less of an idea of what to get them.

Now once Rose realized that she wasn’t likely to find anything for them, she told Jack to meet her back at the escalator in half an hour, and went off on her own. He’d given her a worried look, but it’d quickly faded into amusement. Then, after he’d made sure she had money of her own, Jack had gone off alone.

Once they’d separated, Rose wandered around the store for awhile, keeping an eye out for anything she thought Jack or the Doctor might even remotely like as a present.

As Rose walked, she discovered that the store had changed a lot since she’d last shopped in her home century. Including the clothes departments that took up three whole floors of the store, there were jewelry stores, shoe stores, gift shops, and a small bookstore.

The jewelry store caught her eye first, since the display in front had the typical feminine bracelets, necklaces, and earrings, but it also had several men’s watches. Usually the Doctor wasn’t one at all for flashy things, at least, her old Doctor hadn’t been, but he might like something simple. Well, he’d like it after giving her the whole ‘I’m a Time Lord, I don’t need a watch to tell time’ speech. A speech she may or may not listen to when it came.

Rose adjusted her purse on her shoulder, and stepped inside the store, moving towards the display of men’s watches on the left side of the shop.  
~~~

With a small bag hanging from her left wrist and her wallet considerably lighter, Rose stepped back out of the store and rejoined the crowd.

At least she’d found a gift for the Doctor, but who knew watches were so much. That only left Jack on her list.

Out of the two of them, Jack was probably the easiest to find something for… and yet, she still had no idea. So instead, Rose started wandering again, but other than going down to the clothing floors, nothing at all caught her eye.

Aware that time was quickly running out before she and Jack had to meet up again, Rose retraced her steps back through the store.

The second time Rose passed the bookstore again, the crowd had thinned slightly so now she was able to clearly see the display. What caught her eye were the two rows of Disney movies between the old classics and the DVDs of popular TV shows on the cardboard display.

She moved in closer until she was standing right in front of the display, and then leaned down to look over the Disney movies. Halfway along the first row, her eyes stopped at the cover of the Lion King, one she remembered as being one of her favorites when she was little.

It was probably just what Jack would like to watch on the quiet nights on the Tardis when they watched movies together, or when they used to watch movies together. Who knew if the three of them would still have those nights?

Rose laughed, and picked up one of the DVDs before moving towards the counter.  
~~~~~~~~~

Rose hurried up to where Jack was waiting, leaning against the plastic paneling surrounding the area where the escalator was. He didn’t look very impatient, but she knew she’d kept him waiting for a few minutes at least. Rose was happy to see that he had a few bags with him, so he seemed to have been successful as well.

Jack smiled at her before enveloping her in a tight, welcome embrace. When he let go of her again, her friend took the bag hanging from her wrist and added it onto his own load.

She’d told him enough times that despite being a girl, she was stronger than she looked and could fend for herself. But apparently he still hadn’t gotten that through his thick skull yet. Even if sometimes she found his chivalry nice.

But this time, before she could protest, Jack held his arm high above her head so she couldn’t reach.

“No, Rose, let me be the gentleman for once,” Jack admonished, grinning. He moved a little ways from her, making Rose follow him. “And there’s no Doctor here to take your side this time,” Jack teased, laughing. But then, when her smile faded at his words until she looked completely uncomfortable, his faded as well.

It took him a few seconds to realize what had upset her. But then, when he did, he felt horrible for having said it. “Rose, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean it. I forgot.” Jack moved closer to her, putting his hands on her shoulders. “He’ll come back, Rose. I promise.”

There was a slight pause, as if she wasn’t sure if she should believe him. But then Rose finally smiled at him again, and raised her head to say, eyes slightly watery behind her smile, “I know, Jack. I know he will.”

He opened his mouth to reassure her, but before he could say a word, Rose began moving towards the top of the escalator. “Come on, Jack. Now that we’ve got our gifts, we should get things for the Doctor too. And you’re the one I’m depending on for all of that,” Rose declared, pointing a finger directly at him as she grinned.

Jack just shook his head, and hurried after her.  
~~~

All in all, the task of buying jim-jams for the Doctor, which was where they decided to start, wasn’t as hard as Rose had expected it to be.

To her amusement, and partial relief, Jack turned out to be quite gifted at guessing the right sizes for the Doctor. And once they’d figured that out, the two of them had lots of fun choosing colors they thought would look good. Even if neither of them knew this Doctor, though Jack did better than her, they did their best. Some of the colors were just awful, making her wonder why they’d ever been used for clothes in the first place. It also gave Jack an excuse to laugh every few minutes at the really horrible color choices.

Of course, the other customers and shop assistants shot them dirty looks every once in a while when she and Jack got too loud. But for the most part, she and Jack simply ignored them and enjoyed themselves.

Finally, they decided on two different sets of jim-jams, the first plain blue, and the second, striped brown. She thought he’d rather have plain clothes that were comfortable, rather than fancy ones, and Jack seemed to agree since he ended up paying for them. Then when Rose insisted on paying him back, Jack had waved it away as if it was nothing. It made her wonder why the two of them had usually depended on the Doctor for money on their travels. But now, they were finally doing something in return for him.

With the bag holding the jim-jams swinging from her hand, Rose led Jack away from the counter, and back towards the escalators.

As they stepped onto the downward moving escalator, Jack continued their previous conversation. But this time Rose’s heart wasn’t in it. She was distracted by something, distracted by the odd feeling that something was wrong all of a sudden. A feeling she couldn’t figure out the source of.

Rose turned around as she and Jack continued moving downwards, but everything seemed fine with nothing out of the ordinary. There were just lots of shoppers doing last minute Christmas shopping, and probably grumbling all the while. The store was packed with customers, and she had to strain over the din to hear what Jack was saying. But, it wasn’t the noise of the other people; it was also the music from the brass band that was playing at the first floor entrance.

The brass band at the entrance they were now moving towards, the band dressed like Santas and playing God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman.

She frowned, unsettled, and turned back towards Jack to lean in to him. “Jack, you remember if that brass band was there when we came in?”

He seemed surprised by the question, but opened his mouth to reply, or so she guessed.

Unfortunately, Rose would never know what he would have said, because that was when chaos broke out near the entrance below them.

The Santa brass band suddenly stopped playing and lowered their trumpets. Blue flame shot out of the instruments, causing people to start running around screaming, and also for things to start catching fire around them.

Out of the two of them, Jack was the first to respond, grabbing her hand and quickly pulling her down and off the escalator.

“Jack! What’re you doing?” Rose protested as he led her behind one of the counters, and then pulled her down behind it.

“There are things dressed up like Santas, and I’m guessing they’re not real people, shooting flames out of trumpets, Rose.” He told her, as if she didn’t have any idea of what was happening. “And whoever they are, they’re probably after us!”

Rose stared at him. “You think the fake Santas with the flamethrowers are after us?”

Jack shook his head at her, and peeked around the counter to see that most of the commotion had stopped. At least, had stopped to the point where most of this part of the store was deserted. He turned back to her and said, with some hint of impatience in his voice, “I’m not an expert on 21st century culture, Rose, but I’m guessing that fake Santas with flamethrower trumpets aren’t common in your century.”

Rose glared. “No, they aren’t, Jack. And surprise that that is, then why are they especially after us?”

He glared back at her, and then grabbed her hand again to pull her out from behind the counter. As they weaved their way through the store to the other entrance, dodging between clothes racks in order to avoid detection, he called to her over his shoulder. “Think, Rose, there’s nothing exceptionally important about the two of us. But who do we have currently trapped with your mum back in your flat?”

At one of the times when they paused, Rose asked confused, ignoring the jab about her mum, “The Doctor? But he doesn’t even know who he is, Jack! He doesn’t really know anything!”

The two of them managed to make it safely to the other entrance. Then ran together out into the street where things were a little less chaotic.

“Yes, Rose, we know that, but they don’t. They think he’s really the Doctor, and they’re after him because of that.” Jack reminded her as they began walking down the sidewalk back towards the flat. “So now, not only do we have a newly regenerated and amnesiac Doctor on our hands, but also aliens posing as Santas.”

Rose jogged a few steps to catch up with Jack’s hurried pace. “How do we know they’re aliens? Maybe they’re just people who like to dress up as Santa and play Christmas carols on their trumpets!”

“With flame throwers, Rose? Correct me if I’m wrong, but that doesn’t sound like normal 21st century behavior.” He shook his head. “Aliens, invading Earth on Christmas. I swear, you and the Doctor are like two huge trouble magnets.”

Beside him again, Rose laughed. “Oh yeah, cause you’re definitely not one. But, Jack, if they are after the Doctor, what’re we going to do?”

“He’s in your flat, with your mum, Rose. I’m sure he’ll be fine for now.” Jack added under his breath, “If she doesn’t regenerate him again first, that is.”

Rose glared at him, lightly slapping his arm. “That’s my mum you’re talking about, Jack. Try to be a little nice. And she wouldn’t regenerate him again. She’d just fuss over him.” She bit her lip. “Probably.”

Jack sighed, checking behind them once before starting to walk a little faster again. “If you’re so worried about them, just call her, Rose. It’ll at least give you some peace of mind for the time being.”

“Right,” Rose replied sarcastically. But after a moment’s thought, she still took out her phone and began dialing anyway.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part two of the last chapter, which is why the ending is a bit sudden and weird. ^_^;
> 
> Hopefully more to come soon.
> 
> Enjoy!

Back at the Tyler flat, the man who was supposedly called the Doctor was on his last nerve.

He didn’t really understand what that meant; actually, he didn’t understand it at all. But from what he could tell, it seemed appropriate enough for this situation.

The man was grateful to this Jackie woman for looking after him while Rose and Jack went shopping. Even though he didn’t really need to be fussed over; he was ill, and apparently had amnesia, it wasn’t like he was dying or anything! But, either way, it didn’t mean she had to constantly hover nearby, asking if he needed anything every five minutes or so. He was perfectly content with sitting in the chair in the corner under the blanket she’d given him, watching the telly as she decorated the tree.

Apparently, it was a common custom to decorate the tree on Christmas Eve, since there was nothing but rubbish on the telly no matter what station he changed to. In the end, he simply switched it off and watched Jackie instead. Every once in awhile he surprised himself by humming along to the radio she had turned on.

Suddenly, the comfortable silence they’d fallen into was broken by the sound of something ringing shrilly.

He sat up, startled, the blanket falling from his shoulders as he stared around the room.

Jackie moved away from the tree, and towards the kitchen. She stopped just long enough to rest her hand on his shoulder and say, “It’s alright, love, just the phone.”

Then, before he could come up with a proper response, she had disappeared into the other room.

A minute or so later, Jackie came back in with the phone trapped between her shoulder and her ear, chatting away about something or other. As she talked, she moved around the room, picking things up and setting them elsewhere, or just chucking them into the bin she held.

He was confused to see several used tissues scattered about on the table, accompanied by a box of tissues where they’d probably come from. Obviously, something had happened while he and Jack had been away, something that had horribly upset Rose or Jackie. From the way Rose had reacted when he and Jack had shown up earlier, he’d hazard a guess that it’d been Rose.

Frowning and confused, the Doctor’s gaze followed Jackie as she continued buzzing around the room, then came to rest on the tree again.

There was something off about that tree, but he couldn’t exactly wrap his mind around why.

It might’ve been because after Jack and Rose had been gone just even less than a half hour, the doorbell had been rung by a cheerful delivery man with a tall rectangular box asking for a Jackie Tyler. Jackie had interrogated the poor man, which had been quite entertaining, before she finally consented to let him inside.

The tall box had turned out to be one of those artificial plastic trees that came with the lights already on them. Jackie had complained a little about having to decorate another tree all over again, but nonetheless, the delivery man had set it up and left with a cheery “Merry Christmas”.

Suddenly, Jackie moved into his line of sight, jarring him out of his thoughts as her voice distracted him from studying the tree. She picked up the tissues, and then lightly tapped the side of his legs with the bin. It was just long enough of a break for her to say, “Budge,” to him before she returned to her conversation.

He rolled his eyes, but did as she asked. It hadn’t taken him long to realize that it was better to obey Jack Tyler than to get in her way. Sitting up slightly, the man gestured at the phone and asked, “Is that Rose? Tell her I say hello!”

Jackie turned back towards him to mouth, ‘It’s not Rose,’ before she moved away again. As she did so, she said to whoever was on the phone, “Oh, it’s nothing, Bev. Just a friend of Rose’s who’s staying over.”

The Doctor ‘hmphed,’ sitting back and crossing his arms. ‘Nothing,’ and, ‘just a friend of Rose’s’ indeed. Was that all Jackie saw him as?

He was saved from being slapped because of his response, when suddenly the front door slammed open. A few seconds later Rose’s voice was calling for him and Jackie from the hallway.

“Mum? Doctor? Where are you?”

“In here!” He called back, worried by how upset she sounded.

Rose burst into the room, taking everything in in a moment’s glance, before hurrying over to where her mum stood staring. The phone was still held half-forgotten in her hand.

“Mum, get off the phone,” Rose demanded, pulling the phone away.

As Jackie protested, and Rose convinced the mysterious person on the other end to hang up, the Doctor turned towards Jack who had come in just after Rose. He asked curiously, “What happened? I thought the two of you went shopping.” The Doctor leaned slightly over the side of the chair to gaze at the bags hanging from Jack’s wrists, and then a bit more to see the bag Rose had dropped next to the couch. “Not that you two seem to have bought much at all,” he said skeptically.

Jack gave him a resigned look, and glanced over at Rose. “We ran into a bit of…trouble, before we got very far. But…” he paused, one side of his mouth twitching upwards. “We did manage to get you some pajamas.”

The Doctor simply stared at him, shocked. “Jim-jams? All you managed to buy were some jim-jams? How do you expect me to do any world saving in my jim-jams? That’s not respectable at all!”

Rose turned from where she’d been arguing with Jackie. “What’s this about saving the world in your jim-jams?” She asked curiously.

He turned as much as he could in the chair, wincing slightly at the sudden wave of pain. Then, he gave her one of the looks she was used to seeing from blue eyes, not brown. More specifically, the long look that made her want to check to make sure she hadn’t drooled on her shirt.

Just when she was getting uncomfortable, he blinked again, and the similarity was gone, the moment lost.

“Jack here says all you two managed to buy were jim-jams!” He announced, with a hint of a pout. “So, apparently you expect me to save the world in jim-jams!”

Rose rolled her eyes. “You’re focusing on just a small part of the big picture, Doctor. Right now, we have a bit of a larger problem we need to worry about.”

“What’s the problem, then?” Jackie asked slightly irritated, deciding to enter the conversation now. It had to be a problem if the two of them burst in like this.

Jack and Rose exchanged glances before finally he blurted, “Fake Santas. Aliens dressed up like Santa, with flamethrowers.”

Jackie stared, looking back and forth at them with wide eyes. “You’re joking. You have to be.”

The Doctor perked up, his interest sparked. “You’re saying that there were aliens, dressed up like Santa, at the shop you two went to, with flamethrowers.” He repeated, studying them. “And you’re serious.”

“Course we are!” Rose protested huffily. “Come on, Doctor. This might be strange even for us, but there’s aliens. On Christmas. In London. That has to mean something, Doctor, and we’re here to fix it.” She grinned at him. “Team Tardis, traveling the universe, and defeating aliens. Even on Earth.”

Something flickered in the pale face and dark eyes as she said the word Tardis. But, even as hope rose in her, it was gone again and he simply looked skeptical.

Rose shook her head and sighed, pulling her eyes away from him and back to her mum.

“Right, we need to get out of here,” she announced hurriedly, “Where can we go?”

Jackie stared at her. “Go? It’s Christmas Eve, Rose. We’re not going anywhere! We’re staying right here.”

“Don’t be thick, Mum! There’re aliens with flamethrowers coming after us!” Rose protested. “And they probably followed us back here. So we have to get out now!”

“We could go to a hotel,” Jack offered, moving into the room for the first time. “You do have hotels nearby, right?”

Now Jackie turned to him. “This is London! Course we have hotels close by! Who do you think we are? Barbarians?”

His hands came up, palms opened towards her. “I didn’t mean any disrespect, Ma’am. It was just a question.”

“No need to bite his head off, Jackie,” the Doctor scolded her lightly, slowly sliding off the chair to rise warily to his feet. He felt a flicker of annoyance when he nearly lost his balance, tipping slightly so that he had to grip the arm of the chair to steady himself. “If there are aliens after us, then by all means, let’s get out of here.” He winced. “Or perhaps the three of you should. I’m afraid I wouldn’t be of much use.”

Rose moved towards him, taking his free arm and letting him lean against her. “Don’t be ridiculous, Doctor. We’re not leaving you behind. It’s the four of us together, always will be.”

“Not to mention that you’re the one they’re after,” Jack added quietly, but the Doctor heard him anyways.

He turned shocked dark eyes on Jack. “Me? What have I ever done to them? To aliens! Why are they after me?”

Rose and Jack were silent in response, exchanging looks as they puzzled over what to say. Once again, they found themselves stumbling in the face of the Doctor’s amnesia.

As the living room fell into silence, despite the impending danger of the arrival of the alien Santas, Rose found herself leaning slightly into the Doctor, clasping her hand in his. It wasn’t something she had really had to think about even.

Then, not really wanting to meet anyone’s eyes, Rose’s gaze wandered around the room before settling firmly on the new tree.

Her eyes widened slightly, taking in the green plastic tree she’d never seen before in her entire life.

“Mum, where’d you get that tree?” Rose asked anxiously, unconsciously walking back towards Jackie and pulling the Doctor, stumbling, with her. “That’s a new tree. Where’d it come from?”

Jackie looked at her as if she’d suddenly started speaking nonsense. “I don’t know. I thought it was you two!”

“How could it have been us?” Jack asked confused. “We didn’t go tree shopping.”

“No, you just went shopping for gifts and jim-jams,” The Doctor corrected, the smile he flashed Jack at odds with the ridicule in his voice.

Jack shook his head at the other man. Then he asked, “So, if it wasn’t us, then…”

He almost immediately regretted his question when suddenly the lights on the tree flickered on, starting at the bottom, until the entire tree was lit up.

“You have got to be kidding me,” Rose protested weakly, staring at it in horror.

Beside her, the Doctor’s eyes were lit up, staring at it in what could be considered awe. “Oh, you are…”

Now, the bottom section of the tree began spinning, followed by the middle section that spun in the other direction, and finally, the top section began spinning. All of this was done as it hummed an annoying mechanical version of Jingle Bells.

If they hadn’t realized they were in danger before, it became really obvious when the tree began spinning faster and faster, as the music picked up speed as well.

It was when the tree began spinning and actually moving towards them that Jackie began screaming. Her and Rose, towing the Doctor stumbling behind her, backed away towards the back wall, trying to get away.

“This way! This way!” Jack coached them, waving his hands as he kept a watchful eye on the advancing tree.

“Come on!” Rose said, grabbing her terrified, screaming mother’s hand, and pulling her and the Doctor, who didn’t seem to be able to take his eyes off the tree, together towards Jack. The tree continued to relentlessly advance on them, chopping up the poor table as its first victim, letting nothing get in its way.

When they were close enough to him, Jack reached out and grabbed Jackie, pulling her behind him so he was shielding her. He did the same to the Doctor, who went with a muffled protest.

“Back! Get back!” Jack instructed, flapping his hand at them as he moved backwards as well, herding them towards the hallway.

“I’m gonna get shish-ka-bobbed!” Jackie wailed as the tree came closer and closer, and she stumbled backwards.

“Not shish-ka-bobbed, Jackie,” the Doctor corrected, having to yell to be heard over the din of the Christmas carol from the tree. “Shredded to pieces.”

“I think you should be more concerned about being killed by a Christmas tree, than how exactly it’s going to go about killing us!” Jack yelled over his shoulder to them, as he tried fending it off with anything he could reach.

“I was trying not to think about that, Jack!” The Doctor called back. “But thanks!”

“Will you two stop yelling, and do something?!” Jackie yelled at them, clutching onto the Doctor’s arm.

“What do you want me to do?” Jack asked as he threw aside his latest attempt at stopping the tree, and the Doctor yelled at her annoyed.

Rose suddenly slipped around the Doctor to reappear at his side, nearly breathless. “Here!” She told him, pressing a thin silver metallic tube into his hand. “Use this!”

He stared at it, and then asked, forehead creased, “What’s this?”

“Just use it!” She yelled back, hoping that part of him would recognize it in time to save them.

They were nearly level with the bedrooms’ doors now. The tree was now ripping horrible marks in the walls as it followed them into the small hallway.

It was now or never.

Jack turned his head, and caught sight of the tool in the Doctor’s hand, as well as Rose’s reappearance. “Rose, what do you think you’re doing?” he asked worriedly, wincing at the sound the tree was making as it ripped into the walls.

“He needs it!” The girl yelled back irritably, stepping closer to the Doctor.

“What are you three on about?” Jackie shrieked, eyes fixed on the tree.

“What is this?” The Doctor yelled, nearly drowning Jackie out, pointing at the silver object in his hand.

Jack resumed his watchful eye on the tree. But he still yelled back, “It’s your sonic screwdriver!”

“Sonic screwdriver?” The Doctor repeated, staring skeptically down at it. “Who needs a sonic screwdriver?”

The tree continued coming closer, still merrily playing the tune as if it wasn’t about to kill them.

Finally, there was nothing left to ward it off with, and their backs were pinned up against the front door.

“It’s no use!” Jack yelled. “Get the door open, and get out!”

Jackie turned and tried to open the door, but in her panic she couldn’t get it open.

Then, just when they were sure they were about to die, the Doctor said abruptly, “No need for that. I’ve got it.” and stepped around in front of Jack.

With the tree just inches away, he quickly fiddled with the sonic screwdriver and raised his arm, pointing it at the tree. The tool buzzed for a few seconds, and then the tree proceeded to explode right in front of them.

Rose, Jack, and Jackie let out a collective sigh of relief. But the Doctor didn’t waste the time; instead he turned around and strode back towards the door. He managed to open it on his first try, and slipped outside, muttering something about a remote control.

Jack and Rose hurried after him once they realized he’d disappeared, following him outside.

They found him standing at the metal railing, looking down at the snow covered expanse of concrete below, where three Santas stood gazing up at him. It was as if the Doctor and the Santas were locked in a silent staring contest.

Jack and Rose came to stand on either side of him while Jackie paused hesitantly in the doorway.

“That’s them,” Jack announced quietly.

Rose frowned, leaning a little over the railing. “Told you they’d follow us,” She told the company in general, then looked up at the Doctor. “What are they?”

Instead of answering her, the Doctor raised his arm once again, and pointed the sonic screwdriver at the Santas in a silent threat.

Luckily after a few seconds the Santas backed away a few steps together. Then they stopped and suddenly disappeared in beams of blue light that vanished them upwards.

Jack blinked, and then smiled. “Well, that certainly took care of them.” He turned to Rose. “See Rosie? All we had to do was threaten them with a sonic screwdriver!”

From behind them in the doorway, Jackie commented, “You never said what they were.”

The Doctor turned around so the railing was at his back. “Pilot fish.”

Jackie stared at him. “Pilot fish?” she echoed.

“Pilot fish,” the Doctor agreed.

Rose glanced at the pavement now free of Santas, and then back at him. “Pilot fish?” she asked confused.

The Doctor opened his mouth, but before he could say anything more, Jack butted in.

“Will you three stop it, and be serious for a minute?” He protested, giving all of them a stern look. “If we have pilot fish following us and trying to kill us, then we’re really in trouble.”

Rose frowned, “So, what are pilot fish?”

“They’re,” the Doctor began to explain, but then he began coughing hoarsely, bent nearly in half. He suddenly stumbled back towards the other wall, and turned to rest his back against the cold stone. “Oh no, not yet,” he protested between coughs, the words coming out barely more than a whisper.

Rose rushed over to him. “Doctor? What’s wrong?” When he slowly slid down the wall to slump at the bottom, she followed him down and knelt next to him.

He gave a few hacking coughs, hand on his chest. Finally, he recovered enough to say, “I’m…I’m still regenerating. But, it’s going wrong again. My mind’s such a mess. So many thoughts and memories whizzing around. Makes it hard to concentrate.”

“Doctor,” Rose said softly, half-noticing Jack as he came over to stop near the Doctor’s legs.

The Doctor roughly scrubbed his face with his hand, and then suddenly turned towards her. His dark wild eyes studied her face without seeming to recognize her at all. But then, when their eyes met again, his focused again and he was back.

“Rose,” the Doctor whispered softly, one hand coming up to cup her cheek. She was startled and worried when she realized that the skin that was usually cooler than hers actually felt hotter. “Oh Rose. Dear Rose, sweet Rose. A Rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” He paused, frowning. “No, no, no, that’s not true at all. Shakespeare had it all wrong; my Rose is not like any other Rose. No other Rose in the universe is like her.” He smiled softly, leaning in towards her. “The Rose with the universe in her hands.”

Rose found herself blushing at his words, but, unfortunately, this wasn’t the time. “Doctor. Doctor, I need you to focus. What’re pilot fish?”

His smile slipped away at that, forehead creasing. “Oh no. No, no, no. You don’t want to know about them, Rose.” The hand fell away from her face, and his voice dropped as well. “They’re dangerous.”

From nearby, Rose heard Jack laugh. But she was a little distracted right now. “Right. So they’re dangerous, yeah? But if I really wanted to know…”

The Doctor gave her a studious look, and then seemed to find whatever he was looking for, since he nodded and began to explain. “They’re…they’re scavengers.” He started coughing badly again, but moved away from her when she leaned in to help. “D-don’t!” The Doctor protested. “I…I need…” he broke off to lean back and give one gasping breath, then exhaled deeply, a golden light escaping from his mouth.

“What on-“ Jackie commented, eyes wide.

“See?” The Doctor questioned, steadying himself. “I’m still bursting with energy from the regeneration, and they can smell it. So they come down here, and do away with the defense,” He looked around at all of them, “That’s you lot, and then steal me away.”

Jack knelt down next to Rose and the Doctor. “That’s not going to happen, Doc. I promise,” he pledged, resting a firm hand on both of their shoulders. “I’ll take care of them.”

“Thank you, Jack,” The Doctor said softly, gratefully. He now alternated between glancing at the two of them. “I’ll…I’ll try my best, but I don’t know how often I’ll be around. As myself, that is. Like I said, the regeneration’s still going a bit wrong, and, I can’t…” He broke off again to go into a series of hoarse, hacking coughs. Rose and Jack rushed to support him, his thin body shaking under their hands.

“Doctor,” Rose breathed worriedly, and Jack raised his other hand to place it against the Doctor’s forehead.

“You’re burning up again,” Jack mused worriedly, sighing.

The Doctor turned to look at him once more, his expression puzzled. “Really? It feels so cold, freezing actually. Like an ice cube.” He laughed. “I’m a human, man-sized ice cube!” Suddenly he fell backwards, and out of their hands, slumping against the wall. “Or a weak, floppy, ice cube.”

Rose moved up beside him again, slipping his hot sweaty, hand into hers. “Doctor, you’re getting worse again. We need to get you inside.” she glanced over at Jack, who nodded his agreement.

They started to help the Doctor to his feet. But only a few seconds later, his hands were like iron bands around their arms, and he was tottering between them.

“I…I can’t!” The Doctor gasped, “Not yet.” He turned to Rose, leaning against Jack for support.

“Rose, before I go…”

She stepped closer to him. “Doctor, please. You’re not…”

“Rose,” he interrupted firmly. “I don’t have much time. I just wanted to say, I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for you. That I couldn’t protect you.”

The Doctor took both of her hands in his, relying on Jack to keep him upright. “But, I promise you. As soon as I’m better, and the three of us are traveling again- I’ll always be there. Both of us will.”

Then, before Rose, or even Jack, could say anything, the life seemed to go out of him, and he collapsed to the ground, unconscious once again.


End file.
